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i really have no clue about all the watt power output stuff or L2 L3 L4 L5 L6 workout training programs. i started cycling when i was 11 and now im 15. im no rich kid, i have been living in chicago most of my life, the point is that i have been riding cheap bikes. anyway, recently i have been training really hard to join a bicycle shop to get a sponsorship. i have a trek antelope which i got from a guy who didnt want it and was gonna throw it away, its about 25 pounds. im 6'1 and weigh 175 pounds. i can do three leg extensions at 190 pounds. i can ride 80 miles in about 4 hours on the highway with my bike. recently i was taking a 40 mile round trip and i ran over a glass bottle exactly at the farthest point of my trip, bummer, i had to ride 20 miles nonstop at atleast 15mph so my back tire (front tire was ok) wouldnt lose its shape and pop out of the rim, i made the trip in about 2.5 hours on a flat tire without stopping at all. and i have a last question, is smoking really bad for a cyclist. i sometimes smoke usually after a long trip to calm myself down or to get "loosened up". my training usually consists of lots of gunning it through the streets of chicago at 25mph for short periods of time to keep myself from getting run over. i would love any tips, thanks a bunch to anyone who reads this

While I've never raced bicycles (aside from my recent stints doing triathlons... slowly), I have raced cars and I think the principles are the same.

Firstly, no you are not good enough to get sponsored.

Second, make your next cigarette your last

Third, Keep training, training, and training, but rest as well. Talk to this shop and see what they look for in a cyclist they sponsor, and then direct your training towards that, and your lifestyle. That means no smoking, eating right, training and resting properly. You will likely need a decent road bike (if thats what you are looking to race), and in all honesty you will need to build up some credit by entering some road races and hopefully finishing well. No one will give you a cent unless you can prove with hard numbers that you can perform.

Fourth, be prepared for failure. I can't tell you how hard I worked to get a sponsor, and I never did get one. I had to turn down 2 team contracts due to lack of funding. That said, it still didn't stop me, and don't let it stop you, whats the worst they can say, no? Is your life over, no, keep working at it. If you want it, you can get it, you just need to commit to it.

Being a sponsored cycle racer is a TOUGH dream, and at 15 its not likely, but if you want to commit to it, it is something you can work to so maybe in a few years, that dream of being a sponsored cyclist could come to you. Just keep in mind, most people pay to race, not race to be paid.

Rogue may be saying that, but I think he is more saying that it is hard and a lot of people may find spending the time to do it not worth it. Of all the people in the world (almost 7,000,000,000) only a few of thousand race pro (that would be my guess) and of that only a portion make a living doing just cycling - I remember watching a DVD about the former Netzero cycling team and some of those guys were getting paid squat and had to work two part time jobs and pay their own way in terms of travel and repair and such and then the all lost their jobs at the end of the year because Netzero pulled out of the game.

However, you are still young so keep on trucking and maybe, just maybe, your dream will pan out.

After that Google "cycling cadence". Sheldon Brown (may he R.I.P.) and his website has plenty of information, Parktool.com > "Repair help" is a very good go to guide if you need to fix something and Bicycling.com is my homepage. "Cycling interval training" would be another good bet to Google.

Good luck and I look forward to seeing you back on here in 10 years, assuming I am alive (I am only 21, lol), and telling us about how you decimated the field at the Denver City Park Criterium or something bigger. If not, still quit smoking and I guarantee that your cycling will be better. Cycling should be what calms you down and loosens you up. For me it was cycling > alcohol.

There is a book at booksellers now, entitled _Roadie_, subtitled "the Misunderstood World of a Bike Racer." The author is Jamie Smith, a member of Bikeforums. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, even though I do not aspire to race, or really fit the category of "roadie" all that well. The book explains how road racing works, including such things as licenses, categories, and sponsorships. It does not cover mountain bike racing, which is a totally different ball game, nor track (velodrome) racing.

so ur saying u have never really trained cycling that much, im just asking, would u have any cycling tips?
?

I train a lot but I'm a relative newbie to the sport, I hope some others chime in here with some good tips, I don't believe I'm qualified to give much cycling advice considering present company (the membership of this forum).

I have a friend who was a pro-cyclist and got out of the game, he ended up moving to Europe for a while and he was sponsored, it is an all consuming sport, and he started younger than you, and quit around age 26.

REX g thanks a lot, i have no clue about biking but with this book i might learn something i have gotten addicted to biking, for this past year i have been riding like crazy, winter, spring, rain, snow, even sometimes ice. i want to join a team in chicago but i need some kind of uscf licensce and most of them are only for college ppl

i really have no clue about all the watt power output stuff or L2 L3 L4 L5 L6 workout training programs. i started cycling when i was 11 and now im 15. im no rich kid, i have been living in chicago most of my life, the point is that i have been riding cheap bikes. anyway, recently i have been training really hard to join a bicycle shop to get a sponsorship. i have a trek antelope which i got from a guy who didnt want it and was gonna throw it away, its about 25 pounds. im 6'1 and weigh 175 pounds. i can do three leg extensions at 190 pounds. i can ride 80 miles in about 4 hours on the highway with my bike. recently i was taking a 40 mile round trip and i ran over a glass bottle exactly at the farthest point of my trip, bummer, i had to ride 20 miles nonstop at atleast 15mph so my back tire (front tire was ok) wouldnt lose its shape and pop out of the rim, i made the trip in about 2.5 hours on a flat tire without stopping at all. and i have a last question, is smoking really bad for a cyclist. i sometimes smoke usually after a long trip to calm myself down or to get "loosened up". my training usually consists of lots of gunning it through the streets of chicago at 25mph for short periods of time to keep myself from getting run over. i would love any tips, thanks a bunch to anyone who reads this

OK, a sponsorship for what? What company is going to pay you their hard earned money to pedal a bike? Are you riding circles around the clubs in Chicago? Making a post with your times does absolutely nothing. Blow away the local riders and you will get noticed. As far as smoking....I smoked for 20 years on and off. When you are young and conditioned it will not harm you much. When you get older....you set yourself up for long term effects such as a pace maker (my grandfather) or horrible lung problems (my grand mother in law). I still want a cig but hold out....Age is still a bigger factor. Smoking is bad for any athelete in any sport.

i dont smoke really at all, only after really very tough exercises otherwise i would be not smoking, thanks a bunch to everyone, i have family even in glenview, ill be sure to check out smart cyclery, this is a very active site. i will stay here for sure. oh ya, rex g, can u by that bok in borders or any kind of book store.

i really have no clue about all the watt power output stuff or L2 L3 L4 L5 L6 workout training programs. i started cycling when i was 11 and now im 15. im no rich kid, i have been living in chicago most of my life, the point is that i have been riding cheap bikes. anyway, recently i have been training really hard to join a bicycle shop to get a sponsorship. i have a trek antelope which i got from a guy who didnt want it and was gonna throw it away, its about 25 pounds. im 6'1 and weigh 175 pounds. i can do three leg extensions at 190 pounds. i can ride 80 miles in about 4 hours on the highway with my bike. recently i was taking a 40 mile round trip and i ran over a glass bottle exactly at the farthest point of my trip, bummer, i had to ride 20 miles nonstop at atleast 15mph so my back tire (front tire was ok) wouldnt lose its shape and pop out of the rim, i made the trip in about 2.5 hours on a flat tire without stopping at all. and i have a last question, is smoking really bad for a cyclist. i sometimes smoke usually after a long trip to calm myself down or to get "loosened up". my training usually consists of lots of gunning it through the streets of chicago at 25mph for short periods of time to keep myself from getting run over. i would love any tips, thanks a bunch to anyone who reads this

1) You clealry have done no research on your own - there is a plethora of resources on the web about training and an entire subforum dedicated to it
2) Stay in school, and learn how to compose a proper thread with paragraphs and capitalization so people actually want to read what you wrote

i dont smoke really at all, only after really very tough exercises otherwise i would be not smoking, thanks a bunch to everyone, i have family even in glenview, ill be sure to check out smart cyclery, this is a very active site. i will stay here for sure. oh ya, rex g, can u by that bok in borders or any kind of book store.

I can only assume bike sponsorship is a bit like any other sponsorship. In dirt bike racing and sports car racing it comes down to winning races. You enter local races and get your license and sooner or later you start winning a race here and there. If you can show you have the ability to win or at least get into the top few places it is easier to sell yourself to a sponsor. Sponsors aren’t there to help you or make life easier for you they are there to see their name when you win a race. If you are good they will want you. If not you will have to get good to get a sponsor.

Being able to spell correctly, and use punctuation and capital letters in the right place, are going to be much more useful skills in life than riding a bicycle.

no way, really, im not here to right journalist quality stories. im doing ap english and ap history in school just for your information. i want to ask you a question and you guys go nagging at my spelling, please

Robert Foster said it. Sponsors are only in it for advertising. They aren't interested in helping riders improve. They want their name out there. If you want a sponsor and aren't winning races, then you won't be sponsored as you can't get their name out there and associated with winners.

You gotta win a bunch of races first, be on big breakaways that last for a long time. Show potential sponsors that you can get their name out at the front of the pack where they want it. That has to be done first. If you can't or won't do that, you won't get a sponsor.

no way, really, im not here to right journalist quality stories. im doing ap english and ap history in school just for your information. i want to ask you a question and you guys go nagging at my spelling, please

Your AP English course must not be very good. One of the handy things about decent courses is you can apply the skills you acquire to other areas of life. For example, AP math students can apply their skills to see how much bike schwag they can buy (presuming they actually know anything).

To answer your question, no, you are not good enough to get sponsored. To do this, you need to ride much more and improve your speed. There is very little money in cycling which means that you have to work very hard to get very little. Plenty of guys older than your parents are faster than you (and they also aren't good enough). Young guys are supposed to be faster than older guys.

You do not need a fancy bike to be fast, so don't worry about that part. Lightweight bikes only make much difference when there is a lot of climbing involved, and you won't find that where you are. I think the advice to join a club is spot on. You need to spend some time with guys who know what they're doing and learn from them. The local shop can help you find a good club.

If you ever start winning races, then you might see the odd bit of bicycle paraphernalia, or perhaps a little cash (i.e. $10 for winning the local Wednesday evening Time Trial), come your way, but until then ...

Join a club and start racing.

Oh, and if you're going to represent a company ... it's a good idea to know how to write and speak effectively. Stay in English class!!

REX g thanks a lot, i have no clue about biking but with this book i might learn something i have gotten addicted to biking, for this past year i have been riding like crazy, winter, spring, rain, snow, even sometimes ice. i want to join a team in chicago but i need some kind of uscf licensce and most of them are only for college ppl

If you do get a sponsor, they might expect full sentences, using real words. It helps for the PR campaigns.

I just had to quit riding because I cut my R arm in half . 10 years later had to have R knee scoped . Then 3 years ago almost no surgery , really had 4 compression fractures of t12 thru t8 . On back for 7 months then , got a call from a friend about a bike went and got it , Started riding for physical therapy now I am pulling almost 75 miles a week and i'm hitting up the boss for some money for gear and offering to advertise on my rides his company name just joked with him but he said he is thinking about it ...
My point is this wheather you get paid for it or not if you believe in yourself enough someone will see it and help you grow to your full potential . If not then you grow yourself with what you have and just get stronger . The only thing holding you back is the reason to endure ,survive and better your ways of thinking . From me go boy go get what you can I am rooting for ya !!!!!!!!